Dick Beebe for Greece supervisor

The two candidates running to replace longtime Republican town Supervisor John Auberger make many of the same promises: Both vow to change the less-than-welcoming format at Town Board meetings, empower Town Board members to speak up and challenge, and set aside political ideology in making appointments.

The difference is, one candidate makes these promises from outside the Republican Party that has abetted governance that has too often raised questions of chumminess, and the other is that party’s local architect.

It is for this reason that Democrat Dick Beebe earns the Democrat and Chronicle’s endorsement for Greece town supervisor.

That the big issue in this race is change is no surprise, given the town has seen its share of well-documented scandals during the tenure of Auberger, who is stepping down due to term limits.

Added to such mismanagement is an all-Republican Town Board that critics say is not responsive to the general public.

It is time to clear the air, and Beebe, a former Monroe County legislator and onetime mayor of the village of Homer in Cortland County, has the plans and experience to do just that. His platform includes establishing an Office of Integrity, opening up meetings and the budget process to more public participation, and establishing advisory committees to tap townwide know-how.

He pledges to emphasize experience in selecting town employees and would establish more far-reaching efforts to publicize opportunities to bring some much-needed diversity to town ranks.

Republican candidate Bill Reilich likewise vows to make diversity a priority — in fact, both candidates embraced involvement in this newspaper’s Unite Rochester campaign to solve racial and economic inequities. And Reilich says the right things about the need for more openness in government operations.

But he should have been saying them earlier. As Monroe County’s Republican Party chairman, Reilich helped elect the supervisor who has headed an administration that all agree has been too clubby. That appearance of putting party ahead of the public is troubling.

And while he insists he’s not a career politician, Reilich has been a state Assembly member for more than a decade, before which he spent six years on the Monroe County Legislature.

Reilich’s conservative credentials and tax-averse voting record speak for themselves, and he offers a specific vision — particularly in areas such as economic development. That’s welcome, but not enough.

Beebe may not be a flashy politician, but what Greece most needs now is a steady and trustworthy leader with no ties to the unpalatable governance of the past decade. It needs a leader who will put the interests of all town residents first. Dick Beebe makes a more compelling case for being that leader.